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Hockeytown's the stuff of dreams

At the entry draft in Ottawa last month, Ken Holland stood holding court on the draft floor with a couple of newspaper types, trading war stories and describing his approach to luring talented players to the Detroit Red Wings.

LONDON–At the entry draft in Ottawa last month, Ken Holland stood holding court on the draft floor with a couple of newspaper types, trading war stories and describing his approach to luring talented players to the Detroit Red Wings.

"We sell dreams and happiness," he said, unable to stop himself from chuckling. "Dreams and happiness."

The Wings general manager was kidding, but only partly so. His hockey club, which boasts the most stable ownership/ management team in hockey as well as the most talented roster, has become the destination of choice for the best players in the sport.

That, it seems, is the only way to understand the decision of Marian Hossa yesterday to accept a 25 per cent discount on his services for one year to go and live in Detroit and play out of crumbling, smelly Joe Louis Arena.

Dreams and happiness, indeed. Hossa clearly valued a chance to play with great players and win a Stanley Cup over maxing out his income, and he identified the Wings as the ideal team to try to reach those goals.

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He could've received $9 million (all figures U.S.) or $10 million a season over six or more years to skate for a variety of teams. Instead, for a one-year, $7.45 million contract, a number designed not to exceed Nicklas Lidstrom's reported team-high $7.6 million paycheque, Hossa moves from skating alongside Sidney Crosby to joining Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk and the rest of the remarkably talented Stanley Cup champions.

Imagine that.

Holland gets to underpay Hossa at the same time the Maple Leafs are overpaying Jeff Finger, the Blackhawks are overpaying Cristobal Huet, the Islanders are overpaying Mark Streit, Boston is overpaying Michael Ryder and the Stars are overpaying Sean Avery.

The rationale in cities like Toronto for getting into questionable contracts is that the free market sets the price and they're powerless to do anything but pay.

That's what John Ferguson said about Bryan McCabe, that's how Cliff Fletcher is explaining the curious Finger deal, and that's the line Leaf loyalists were parroting yesterday.

The Wings, however, set their own market and never throw good money after bad. After giving up prospect Shawn Matthias for a few weeks of Todd Bertuzzi at the end of the '06-07 season, for example, the Wings refused to pony up a huge new deal for Bertuzzi.

Instead, Brian Burke gave him $4 million per season and the Ducks were forced to buy the fading veteran out last month.

Getting Hossa, meanwhile, also gets Detroit out of the "Waiting for Mats Sundin" board game, leaving another half-dozen or more teams scrambling to figure out whether they should continue to try to lure the departing Leaf captain (he is leaving, right?) or set their sights on other players.

The Leafs, of course, still say they want Sundin back. But surely they can't wait either unless they're willing to gamble all other suitors will tire of the chase and that Sundin's a masochist, and thus willing to waste his talents for another year at the ACC.

Detroit's one-year deal for Hossa also shows the enormous confidence Holland and his front office have in being able to make the players they want happy to stay and play in Detroit, sometimes for less money.

Take defenceman Brad Stuart. He could have been an unrestricted free agent after coming over from Los Angeles at the trade deadline, but instead chose to sign a four-year deal worth $3.75 million a season with Detroit without bothering to auction his services off to the highest bidder.

Yep, the same deal the Leafs gave Finger, who will also, by the way, somehow make $750,000 more than Detroit's Niklas Kronwall next season.

Or look at Datsyuk, winner of the Lady Byng and Selke trophies this year. He's heading into the second year of a six-year contract for $6.7 million per season, $2 million a year less than the salary Pittsburgh will be paying Evgeni Malkin under the terms of a new deal unveiled yesterday.

This is Detroit, always getting quality, usually at a discount.

Expect greatness continued.

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